Many sources of illumination are relatively small. This can be particularly true, for example, with light-emitting diodes (LED's). By traditional considerations, LED's can seem disproportionately small as compared to their illumination capabilities. This, coupled further with a relatively long operational life and a relatively favorable operating efficiency, prompts many designers to consider using LED's as a source of illumination in various application settings.
Depending upon the application setting, however, LED's are not always well suited to meet a particular illumination requirement. To sometimes meet this concern, cone-shaped lenses have been employed to effectively increase the area from a spot of light to provide that light over a relatively larger light-output surface.
The applicant has determined that cone-shaped lenses can introduce problems of their own, however. Generally speaking, the LED must be placed relatively specifically and carefully with respect to the cone-shaped lens' apex. Assuring this registration within a desired degree of tolerance can be challenging and hence increase design and manufacturing costs. Furthermore, although a cone-shaped lens can increase the size of the light-output surface as corresponds to an LED-based lighting component, the resultant form factor may still nevertheless be inadequate to meet many of a variety of functional, mechanical, and/or aesthetic requirements.
Elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity but are, generally speaking, drawn to relative scale. Also, common but well-understood elements that are useful or necessary in a commercially feasible embodiment are often not depicted in order to facilitate a less obstructed view of these various embodiments of the present invention. Certain actions and/or steps may be described or depicted in a particular order of occurrence while those skilled in the art will understand that such specificity with respect to sequence is not actually required. The terms and expressions used herein have the ordinary technical meaning as is accorded to such terms and expressions by persons skilled in the technical field as set forth above except where different specific meanings have otherwise been set forth herein.